African football giants to face off starting today, with fans spoilt for choice over how they will watch the live broadcasts
Pay TV service provider StarTimes has acquired broadcasting rights to air the Total Energies CAF Africa Cup of Nations set to kick off on Saturday, January 13 and end on February 11, 2024.
Similarly, Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) has been awarded rights for free to air broadcasting, giving Kenyans an opportunity to follow the action live from Cote d’Ivoire.
StarTimes’ rights also include all Confederation of African Football (CAF) events for 2024, covering countries that speak English (Anglophone) and Portuguese (Lusophone) in Sub-Saharan Africa. It will broadcast the games on its world football, Sport Premium, Sport Arena, Sport Live and Sport Focus channels, giving its subscribers a wide array of options to choose from.
That, however, means, DStv Supersport, which broadcasts the English Premier League in markets like Kenya, has been locked out of airing the live matches unless it buys subsidiary rights from StarTimes.
“We are delighted to announce that StarTimes has secured the broadcasting rights for AFCON 2024, representing a significant milestone for the company as we continue to bring the best in sports entertainment to our viewers,” said Jimmy Carter Luo, CEO of StarTimes Media Kenya.
The tournament was initially scheduled for the summer of 2023 but was moved to this month because tropical rains in Cote d’Ivoire peak between June to July.
The continental football showpiece is a fertile ground for the emergence of new stars, some of who eventually sign up to play on the global stage, including in top flight European and Asian national leagues.
StarTimes’ partnership with CAF dates back to the 2019-2022 AFCON and the 2020 CHAN, which features national teams whose footballers only play in African leagues.
